Simple living/minimalist heroes?

[kib]

My friend Esteban. Esteban is amazing. He teaches about handbuilt houses and is living on about 10 acres in Mexico, in a tiny handbuilt adobe house, composting toilet, water from the river, no electricity. Growing much of his own food. And I think his cost of living is probably in the neighborhood of $1,000 a year. He's one of those people who makes everything he touches beautiful, his whole life seems like a minimal, earth-centered work of art.

[catherine]

Now I want to look into that book!

I agree--and actually, I just bought a used copy on Amazon. It looks TOTALLY up my alley. Thanks for the recommendation, Williamsmith!

[Selah]

One of my favorite SL heroes (besides Thoreau, of course) is Eric Hoffer, author of "The True Believer." He lived exceedingly simply, in a studio apartment in California, surrounded by his favorite books and not much else.

[catherine]

This one is not mainstream and certainly a lesser known name but I found her little book to be just what I needed on my retirement at age 51. Jose Hobday. A Franciscan Nun and Seneca Elder. Her book - Simple Living : The Way to Inner Freedom is full of thoughts that challenge your personal beliefs on possessions.

Well, I did buy a used copy on Amazon, and received it yesterday, and it's wonderful! It's very slim, but to the point. The best part are the early chapters in which she describes what simple living is. Here's a nice excerpt taken from this profile of her life.

“Simple living is not about elegant frugality…It is not about harsh rules and stringent regulations…simple living is about freedom. Freedom is about choices: Freedom to choose less rather than more. It’s about choosing time for people and ideas and self-growth rather than for maintenance and guarding and possessing and cleaning.

“Simple living is about moving through life rather lightly, delighting in the plain and the subtle. Simple living has fewer knots and more bows than scattered and cluttered living. Simple living is a relaxed grasp on money, things, and even friends. Simplicity cherishes ideas and relationships. Simple living is not easy. It is not difficult to live a scattered, fragmented, harried, disconnected life. It is difficult to say focused, to live out of a center that allows for calm choices and considered decisions.”

Again, thanks for the recommendation, Williamsmith!

[Williamsmith]

Catherine...I'm glad you found the book as inspiring as I did. Being surrounded by consumerism it is hard be open to ideas that connect freedom with simplicity. This woman truly had it figured out and she was so humble.

[Tulips]

I just started reading the book too . It's simple but profound. Really good